When I pull into my garage I can hear the engine tick or knock. Almost sounds like the grille or hood might be adding to the sound. Does anyone have any experience with this? Also, does the tranny fluid need to be changed at 30,000miles?

 

SmokinMax - I'll leave the tick to engine fans.

As for the tranny fluid, I'm probably duplicating the text that can be found in the Oils and Lubricants' section of the board, but here goes:

Nissan recommends that the tranny fluid be checked every 15K miles, and replaced if it is discolored, smells, seems 'burnt', etc. The Maxima Owners Manual calls for 'unconditionally' changing the tranny fluid at 105,000 miles. Although, under normal driving conditions, the fluid would probably be fine for that distance, few here plan to wait that long.

For lots of congested city driving, or pulling a trailer, or lots of steep mountain driving, I would change at 30K. But, doing all normal driving, I plan to change at 60K. For those who do normal driving, but like to 'baby' their Maxima, I would suggest changing at 45K; 30K if ****.

Just remember, the Nissan 5 speed automatic tranny requires very special fluid (see the Oils and Lubricants section on this board), and it comes at a 'very special' price. Steep.

 

You don't say how many miles you have on your Max. At 46 K miles (mainly highway) on my Max, the engine is only slightly noisier than when it was new -- and has no ticking or knocking sound when running in my garage. You may have something lose that is making the sound. Try leaving the engine idling in the garage and walking around to see if there is something lose making this noise -- it's hard to tell from the driver's seat.

"light" gives you good advice on your auto-trannie. Also remember that it is very difficult (almost impossible) to get all of the old trannie fluid out before you add new fluid. It's the nature of auto-trannies that this difficulty occurs. If I had one, I would do the partial drain and refill about every 30 to 50 K miles -- just for insurance.

Use this link to a stickie on this topic in the Fluids & Lubes section.
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=149056

You should follow advice in the posts of bill99gxe who knows what he's talking about. But be certain that the advice applies to the 5-speed auto-trannie in the 6 Gen.

 

I have 27,000miles now. It almost sounds like a very fast chattering sound. I didn't notice it until I replaced the grille. I was just curious about the tranny because the owners manual mentioned 30K miles. On the highway I can tell that the car never went pass 100mph.

 

Based on the sound you describe, there is a chance that your valves are not properly adjusted. But at only 27 K miles, that is not likely. Does the frequency of the sound vary directly with engine speed, or is it almost independent of engine speed?

I suspect the sound has something to do with the new grill.

 

Only time I can hear it is in a drive thru or at home in the driveway/garage.

 

Maybe one of the cap sprokets came loose from the cam, thats the sound the V8 SHO made before it went ka-put

 

does it tick at a standstill or while moving?

 

I have noticed a "ticking sound" at idle on my max, see the
day I got it. The Stealership Service Manager, tells me that it
is normal for the VQ. I always have suspected that he was full
of sh_t, but have decided not to worry about it until right before
the 36K warranty expires

 

I had a clicking when it rolled, but only at low speed, turned out they don't bend the cotter pin on the axles all they way. Btw if that's, it just take off the center cap on the front wheel and bend away. No need to take off the tire.

 

I also had the ticking sound only on cold starts but it goes away when car is warm sounds like a sewing machine. Gonna take it to the dealership to see if its covered on the powertrain warranty. I have 45000 miles on the engine.

 

You described it right. Sounds crazy. The cabin is so quiet you have to roll down the windows and listen for it. It's a certified nissan,whatever that means.

 

They are going to tell you that this is normal for this engine after a cold start, and that it's operating fine when it warms up.

The worst wear on an engine (in normal operation) is when you do a cold start. I rarely do one because it rarely gets below about 40 degrees in my garage (and never below freezing) even in the middle of winter.

 

I hear the ticking noise also but since I have a CAI I attribute it to that since the stock air inlet system was heavily muffled....

 

Hi Everyone,

The "Ticking" sound is the valves hitting the engine as they open and close. This is normal and if you duck down near the front passenger side by the wheel well you will hear it especially at cold idle. You can lube this yourself or have Nissan do it as it will improve but that is temporary. You can also us higher grade (94 octane) fuel with Tactrol or other generic brands of cleaner and lubricator that are included in the fuel. Don't go out and buy the additive cleaner stuff at your local parts store....as this is useless.

It is not particularly loud and is barely noticeble however all 6 gens exhibit this trait to more or less the same degree. It is not the same as pinging however it is similar. Ping can be corrected usually by two tank fillups of highest octane fuel.

Mine does it and she sounds like a finely tuned Swiss Rolex!

I wonder what the new G35 engine is going to sound like when it becomes available later this year. SAE tested at 306 HP normally aspirated!

Imagine this engine with an APS Turbo or supercharged! Then throw in the X drive!

 

SmokinMaxSE - The ticking noise is the car cooling down. Yes, I have the same exact thing. I can hear it at drive thru's and when I pull in my garage, and especially when I shut it off. Do you hear it when you shut it off? Hope this helps.

 

Defiant,

The ticking noise that is being complained about is from the engine idling. The sound you describe is from the engine and exhaust system cooling down after you turn the engine off -- or pull into a drive-thru after having driven for hours at 90 MPH. It is the tick, tick, tick of contracting metal -- likely in the exhaust system.

 

My 2009 has an engine ticking sound. I was told by the dealer it would go away after using several tanks of premium gas. Did so. Ticking is still there. Is it something potentially serious or just usual to this engine? Thanks.

 

It's a VQ they tick M does the same thing at times

 

You have a 09 with this issue ?

you do know that the 09 is a HR motor , check to see if your oil is low,

on our older VQs the O-ring leaks by the oil filter, causing it to drop oil while your driving, the myth about hte VQ burns oil isn't as much truth as its leaking oil.

when the oil is low, your timing chain tensoniers starts rattling because they are not lube/oil'd

every moving part inside the engine/ valves/ timing chain needs oil , when you run low on oil thats when the ticking starts getting louder

 

Well my 04 does not leak oil around the oil filter or any other place. She is tight. But she also burns oil. The thing to remember about engines is that while they all look the same, there are minor subtle differences between each individual engine of the same style. My VQ burns oil and has since before she was broken in. I am now at 113 K miles.

I keep my oil sump between down 1/2 a quart and down 1 full quart. I check the oil level frequently (2x a month) and add a half quart when the level reaches down a full quart. Operating this engine with the oil sump in this range, I do not have a problem with a ticking timing chain. But like I said above, every version of the VQ engine has slightly different quirks. Mine likes to burn oil, so I keep the oil sump level down slightly in hopes this will help reduce the engine's oil consumption.

 

the O-ring will leak only while your driving, it will leak and you wont know since its not burning on anything, I've seen and witness this , while the car is on idle it wont leak.

as for your issue either your valve seals are going need to be replace if your burning that much oil

 

If my O-ring were leaking while I drive (I just returned from a 3.5 K mile trip), I would see the leaked oil sprayed all over the frame of my Max - behind where the filter sits. I did not see that when I changed my oil after this trip.

I have to admit that the oil burning in my VQ is not consistent. I can drive thousands of miles and the level will not change. But then -- for some reason -- it will burn 1/4 of a quart of oil in a short period (or mileage). Have not figured that out -- yet.

 

I change my xmission fluid every 2 years and same timing for the antifreeze. That equals about 16,000 miles. This applies to my 04 and 08 Max. I never have the transmission flushed but only do a straight drain. I've yet to have any problems with leaks or failures. I had a 94 Max that I owned for 12 years and never had a problem.

 

I don't think that "light" (quoted in post above) is still posting on this site. On this specific thread his last post is dated in 2006. He was a voice of reason, thoughtfullness, experience and common sense. I have missed hearing from him these past 5 or more years.

 

My AC running causes a ticking sound. As soon as I turn it off all is quiet. AC on ticking away. Any concern?

 

Sure he is he just moved to the 7th Gen forum and I completely agree....

 

09 Maxima is NOT an HR....

 

I cannot start a new thread and I have a question, which is below. I guess I can't start a new thread because I have not been a member for long enough or because I have not posted enough. Either way, I don't know where to post my question, so I'm posting it here. I apologize if I should have followed a different process. Please excuse me as I am an IT guy; I am not a highly-savvy car guy and do not know too much about car components...

I have an 05 Nissan Maxima with under 50k miles, in good condition, with no previous issues. I was driving today, going about 45mph, when I noticed my engine started to shake and my rpm's were going haywire between 0 and 1000 rpm. My steering wheel locked up so I couldn't pull over to the shoulder, but I was able to brake and come to a complete stop. I turned the car off and then back on again but my engine appeared to shake again and my rpm's were doing the same thing. I waited a minute, turned it on and was able to shift it into neutral and push it to the shoulder.

Another thing- when it was being pushed to the shoulder, I had a few guys help me and when it was in a good spot, I hit the brakes/emergency brake but it didn't stop until it hit something.

I waited about 10 mins and was able to drive home with no problem.

Any idea why this happened or what I should do to fix it? Please and thank you everyone.

 

I had something similar happen when my car was only about a year old. My experience was not as bad as you describe, but the RPMs did vary and the car could hardly be driven. I shut her down for about 5 minutes and when I started her back up again, she seemed to be running fine. I have not had this problem again and I now have 113 K miles on her. I was told that the computer was making self correcting adjustments and that when these were finished, everyting should be fine.

I hope this is what you experienced. If it happens again, you need to go to your Nissan dealer (or a shop that can read the computer in your car). They can tell you what is causing this problem.

 

Thanks, bro. Good to hear. Had my 2 year old in the backseat with me, so I'm sure it'll be in the back of my head everyday. Hope all is wll